The New Dawn
by StarInTheDarkness
Summary: Moons have passed since the battle with the dark forest, and all is well... until the twolegs begin destroying the clans once again. But StarClan didn't see it coming this time. Now the clans are gone, but one cat can still bring a new dawn.


**AUTHOR NOTE: Well, here it is! My first fan fiction to be put on this website! Truth is, I already have the entire thing written, but I'm revising it, so I'm only posting it chapter by chapter.**

**This takes place after The Last Hope.**

**Enjoy!**

The crisp air of the night blew fallen leaves across the ground. The sky was hazy and dark, blocking out every single star in the sky. Brown grass faded into bare ground that cut off at a cliff. Everything was silent. Everything was lifeless.

Or so it seemed.

A blazing ginger tom sat at the edge of the cliff, staring up at the empty sky with piercing green eyes. His expression was emotionless, his muscles completely still, his eyes and pelt dull. His claws dug into the bare earth beneath him, helping him fight against the strong wind. Although expressionless, an aura of solemnity emitted from the cat as if some dark force had drained all of his happiness away. Two cats sat beside him, one a gray tom, the other a pale ginger she-cat. Unlike the ginger tom, whose eyes never strayed from the sky, the others glared down from the cliff at what lay below.

Far below was a lake, polluted with twoleg rubbish, dead fish, and who knew what else. Surrounding it on all sides were tall structures that shined with twoleg lights. A bridge swarming with monsters stretched across the dark waters. The scents of crowfood and Thunderpaths wafted up through the sky and caused the cats to wrinkle their noses in disgust. They flattened their ears against the noisy honks of monsters and shouts of twolegs. Hundreds of kittypets scavenged the brick alleyways in search of food, and dogs barked from moveable see-through walls in the gigantic twoleg nests.

Far below was a twolegplace larger than any cat could have ever imagined. And unbeknownst to those who took refuge there, the corpses of hundreds of cats lay buried beneath their feet.

The tom's ears turned when he heard the quiet sound of paw steps behind him. "Firestar," meowed a black and white tom. "The four have taken the word of StarClan, and they have made their final decision."

The cat known as Firestar barely nodded, still expressionless. "What is their choice, Tallstar?"

Tallstar hesitated and shuffled his paws, and Firestar immediately knew what he was about to say. "They agree that you should follow through with the plan. However, the choosing of the prophesied cat must be theirs."

Firestar let out a small purr of amusement, the first sign he had shown of any emotion. "They think that every decision in StarClan belongs to them. It amuses me. I'm surprised they didn't interfere more when the Dark Forest rose up against us."

"Perhaps they were testing us," Tallstar suggested.

Firestar did not respond. Instead, he turned to his two companions. They turned their attention to him as he cleared his throat and began to speak. "We have been forgotten for moons. What even our first ancestors foresaw and feared has been laid upon this generation of the stars. I know that we struggle not to fade away completely." His eyes suddenly lit up with anger. "The time of the clans has ended, but there will be a cat that will bring the stars back!" The she-cat leaned forward and licked Firestar's shoulder in comforting.

A muscular white tom padded up silently to the group. "Firestar, it is time to go to the Moonpool."

Firestar approached the cat. "Yes, Whitestorm, let us go now." He nodded to the others, then followed Whitestorm toward the trees in the distance, disappearing into the eerie fog. Once Whitestorm and Firestar were out of sight, the pale ginger she-cat turned to the gray tom. "Graystripe, what are we going to do?"

Graystripe dipped his head sadly. "Only time will tell, Sandstorm. Only time will tell."

The two toms walked through a dense forest that was in leaf bare. It was cold, and the scent of prey was absent. The only light came from the faint glow of the cats' faded, starry pelts. Whitestorm shook his head, letting his tail drag on the ground behind him. "To think that this place was once beautiful. We are worse off now than we were when StarClan separated. Now it's nothing better than the Place of No Stars."

Firestar whirled around to face the warrior. "Never speak such words! As long as the cats of StarClan never give up hope, we will never be like the Place of No Stars!" He turned and continued to walk in furious silence the rest of the way. Whitestorm shook his head quickly as if it would chase away Firestar's harsh tone and followed.

The cats emerged through the ferns at a waterfall crashing into a pool. Paw prints of ancient cats dimpled the rocky ground. The water was dull and brown. Whitestorm sighed. "This pool once shone with starlight. Now it is dull and stinks of twoleg rubbish."

Firestar walked to the edge of the pool without responding and gazed into its depths, standing in silence. Several moments passed. Whitestorm was about to ask if everything was ok when Firestar finally spoke again. "Thunder, Shadow, Wind, and River, show me the cat that you have chosen." Without hesitation, a ripple flushed through the pool. The pool glowed with the colors of thunder, water, air, and darkness. The image of a ginger and white she-cat appeared in the center.

Whitestorm drew in a sharp breath. "Why, that is only a kittypet!" Quickly realizing that this could have been offensive to the once-kittypet, he added, "It's not that a kittypet cannot become a warrior, but they lack prior knowledge! The four should have at least chosen a loner, who has former knowledge of survival! Have the founders lost all sense in their old age?"

Firestar shook his head. "This is the cat they have chosen. This cat will bring forth all the stars to come, and the clans will be once more." Firestar gazed up at the starless sky. "But there will lay many storms in the path of the cats. The stars will once again begin to fill the sky, but they must shine dimly before they bring forth greatness!"

The image faded, and Whitestorm leaned up to Firestar's ear. "You really have faith in this cat." Firestar twitched his tail knowingly. "Then go," Whitestorm replied. "Go and bring the stars back."


End file.
